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Lilly: Hey! It’s your birthday next week right?
Me: Yes! How do you know? I don’t think I have told you?
Lilly: I don’t know you might have mentioned it to someone… What are you planning for your birthday?
Me: I don’t think I did but alright… I have the week off and my best friend is coming over today. We will probably stay home. Why?
Lilly: No, I was just wondering. We don’t really know how you live or what you do.
Me: I know, right? I guess with Hannah’s disappearance and the investigation, we didn’t really have time to talk more. How’s Hannah doing?
Lilly: She is doing okay. She gave her statements with the kidnapping and with what happened with Jennifer. She will face some charges but we don’t know what or when.
Me: I understand. I have to go, my friend is here 🙂. I’ll talk to you soon
Lilly: See you!
I put my phone down and run to the front door. I open the door and there she stands. My best friend! I haven’t seen her for months and we have a lot of catching up to do. She enters with her bags, I grab one and show her her room. I let her settle down and get some drinks ready. I set everything down on the coffee table then she joins me on the sofa. I serve her a cup and she smiles at me. “So what have you been up to?” I smile back “Not much. You know I haven’t been working lately. It’s been a bit boring. Except…” And I explain what happened from the beginning with Thomas’ message till the day Jake went to the mine. “So this Jake, he sounds interesting? Have you met him yet?” I shake my head “No and I don’t think I will any time soon.” She scowls “Why?” I shrugged “Well, first of all, we are in different countries from each other and he… I am not supposed to tell but I trust you, he is supposedly wanted by Interpol and other governments so he can’t show himself and lastly I haven’t heard from him since the day in the mine and I don’t even know if he is ok.” She hums “I see. Ah it’s a shame, it looks like you like him.” I blush “Maybe a little but it’s pointless to like him.” She giggles and I change the subject “And you? Do you have anyone” and she proceeded to tell me about her dating life.
We spend the rest of the evening talking on the sofa, snuggled up under some plaids. We talk late into the night. The next day, we wake up and go shopping for my birthday. She studied cooking in high school and in college. She is making the most beautiful cake I’ve ever seen but I am not allowed to help so I just watch her baking while talking about our lives. Suddenly, she seems pensive then asks “Would you like to meet Jake?” I blush at the question but fortunately she is too concentrated on her baking to notice it which I am glad about. I clear my throat as I am not sure how to answer this and as I am taking too long to answer she looks at me then raises an eyebrow. “I… I… I don’t know…” I lower my eyes. “I guess, yes I would like it but if I do meet him, it means that he hasn’t tried to contact me for months now… I think I would be a bit pissed at him.” She smiles “Did you try to contact him?” I nod and grab my phone. I go into my inbox and click on his name. “Look! For weeks, I sent messages… Never once was he online. I don’t even know if he got out of the mines alright but my friends told me they never found a body and Lilly doesn’t seem worried. So I imagine, I was just a means to an end.” She puts her hand on my arm and I smile at her “Don’t worry, I got over it, my life doesn’t revolve around him.” She hums and returns to her baking. After that discussion, I’ve noticed that she is often on her phone which is not unusual but she looks secretive, which I find really weird. I shrug it off as she is here and I am so happy to not spend my birthday alone.
The day of my birthday is finally here! My family had sent a lot of presents as they couldn’t be present so I have a few gifts to open! My best friend prepared a breakfast and set it in my garden with some homemade raspberries cupcakes and awesome coffee. We are still in our pyjamas when we hear a group of people walking up the stairs next to my house and garden, they all are speaking in a foreign language and they stop at my garden’s door. I can’t see them because of a shed but I hear my name, I look at my friend and she has the biggest smile plastered on her face, phone in hand then she looks at me with mischievous eyes. She types something on her phone and she stands up. She starts walking over the door where the group is and she turns around “Don’t you want to know who’s behind that door? I think there is a surprise for you.” I frown but I come over. I open the door slowly, a bit suspicious. They all quiet down and look at me then they scream “HAPPY BIRTHDAY!”. It took me a few seconds to realise who they were. My brain can’t fathom that my friends from Duskwood are here, in front of me. I don’t say anything while still processing what is going on and my friend nudges on my arm for me to do something. I smile “Hi guys! What are you doing here?” I step towards them and they come forward for a group hug. As everyone is close to me I see a man who stays behind the group with a smile, I wonder who that is. After the hug, everyone pulls away except Jessy who clings to my arm. “Well, we are here for your birthday, of course!” I tighten my grip on her “Really? Where are you staying?” Jessy giggles “We were hoping that you had enough space for all of us. We brought air mattresses and sheets, we are easy!” I laugh, glad about that surprise. I turn to my friend “Did you know about it?” She nods, proud of herself. “Yes, we have been talking for a few days”. “I see, well please come inside” I grab Jessy quickly and whisper “who’s that guy?” She smiles brightly “That’s Jake! He was the one doing all the planning!” She goes inside and Jake is the last one to arrive at the entrance of my house. He stops in front of me.
I look up at his face, I scrutinise every inch of his face, I see a couple of small scars and then I settle on his eyes. They are kind, warm and I could look at them all day. He smiles “Hello, Happy birthday”. I blush a bit “Thank you, Jake.” He smiles wider “You guessed?” I shake my head and laugh “No, I asked Jessy. I didn’t really have time to ponder who you were before you came inside my house.” He laughs, it is a beautiful laugh from a beautiful man. I can’t believe he is here in front of me. We stare at each other for a few seconds but then Lilly comes outside “You have to tell us where we sleep! We’ve already decided who sleeps with whom. But we need the rooms.” I smile at her, I am glad they feel comfortable with me even though it is the first time we are meeting. I follow her inside and Jake follows behind me. I show them the rooms and I tell my best friend that she can sleep with me. She grabs her stuff from the room she was sleeping in and brings it to my room. I turn to Jake who had stayed in the living room. “And what about you?” He shrugs “I can sleep on the sofa if you don’t mind?” “Of course I don’t mind. I will bring you a pillow and some sheets''. I am so flustered by his presence that I stumble on my way upstairs. I join my best friend in my room and yell-whisper. “Oh My GOD! Did you know Jake was coming?!” She bursts out laughing “Yes I knew. He talked to me in private after adding me in the group chat after you’ve told Lilly that I was coming. He wanted to make sure you wouldn’t be too mad at him.” I grab a sheet, a pillowcase and a pillow. “Mmmh, I see.” I go back downstairs and Jake is sitting on my sofa. I put the bedding on the windowsill as he doesn’t need to sleep yet. He smiles at me as a thank you. “Well, here is everything you need. I’m going to change.” I am still wearing my pyjamas and feel a bit self conscious. It is almost summer and it is already warm. I am wearing a short and a large T-shirt but I am not comfortable showing as much skin to people I barely know. I go to the bathroom upstairs and get dressed.
My friend joins me in the bathroom. “Are you mad at me?” I turn to face her “What do you mean?” She shrugs “about Jake?” I shake my head “No, of course not. If I might be mad at someone it would be him, not you.” I am starting to realise that I am getting mad at him for not texting me at all and also disappointed that nobody else told me he was alive. I try to calm down, they are here, it is the most important. I hear someone coming upstairs and it is Jessy “Hey lovelies! What are you doing up there?” I smile at her, I am so glad to see her “Getting ready, I am almost done.” She smiles back “Good” She turns to my friend and holds her hand out “Can you come with me please? I need to ask you something.” My friend nods and they leave me alone. I wonder what they are planning. I take my time getting ready, I could hear them whispering and laughing quietly then they call me. I join them and I can see some gifts set on the table. They all scream “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” and my friend arrives with the cake and a lit candle on it. Jessy says “Make a wish before you blow on the candle!” I make my wish and blow on the candle. They all clap and I go to hug them, thanking them for coming and that is the best birthday ever.